About Us

Transitions o.s.

Transitions (TOL) is a nonprofit organization established to strengthen the professionalism, independence and impact of the news media in the post-communist countries of Europe and the former Soviet Union. We do this through a combination of journalism and media training programs, and the publication of Transitions Online magazine.

Journalism & Media Training

Training journalists and other media professionals in post-communist Europe and Central Asia has always been a key part of TOL’s mission.

We run a variety of programs – residential, distance learning, seminars, internships and coaching – with two main aims: to offer practical journalism training, and to help participants either improve existing media outlets or set up new ones. Click here for more information.

Transitions Online Magazine

Transitions Online (www.tol.org) is an Internet magazine that covers political, social, cultural, and economic issues in the former communist countries of Europe and Central Asia. The magazine has a strong network of local contributors, who provide valuable insight into events in the region’s 29 countries.

History

TOL was established in April 1999, the month after the publication of the final issue of its print predecessor, Transitions magazine. (The print magazine was first published in 1994 by the Open Media Research Institute, a joint venture between Radio Free Europe and the Open Society Institute.) Four of the former print magazine’s staff members established Transitions Online as a means of keeping the widely respected, cross-border coverage of the magazine alive.

Funding

Our training activities would not be possible without the support of our donors, but we also rely on several streams of “self-generated” income.

Training activities tend to be funded by grants, which account for some 75 percent of TOL’s income. However, the Transitions Online magazine is increasingly funded by income from membership subscriptions, advertising sponsorship and syndication. This “self-generated” income accounts for 25 percent of the organization’s revenue, and helps to maintain the editorial independence of the magazine.

Donations

TOL recently launched a drive for donations from our readers and supporters. For the past 11 years, our organization has dedicated itself to nurturing the development of a healthy and robust Fourth Estate in the former Soviet sphere. But to maintain our crucial ability to help reformers, we could use your assistance. We urge you to donate and support our efforts to bring the benefits of a free press to this crucial part of the world.

TOL PROMOTION

Now available! A new TOL e-book: "Crimea: The Anatomy of a Crisis" is a compilation of articles from TOL’s past coverage about Russia's annexation of Crimea, placed in the context of long-running disputes over the region. Find out also what's happened to Crimea and its people nearly a year after Russia's move shocked the international community.